Small Business Marketing

Over the past year or two we have introduced a unique concept to help save your self-funded plan on retiree healthcare costs. This is NOT Medicare Advantage or some other type of retiree plan, it is pure cost savings!

Here are some things to consider:

Pre-65 retirees have average costs 40% higher than employees of the same age.

Open enrollment season is fast approaching and we are all gearing up to have a great year in sales. We would like to provide an additional incentive to you by offering double the first year’s commissions on all NEW DAS sales. We are having tremendous success in offering DAS through the agent and broker network, and we want you to share in that success. Remember, DAS is a perfect fit alongside your voluntary products and offers an affordable comprehensive income protection plan when combined with an STD, CI, Hospital or Accident policy. Some of the current markets DAS is being sold into include:

City Employees

Housing Commissions

Tool and Die Workers

Restaurant Workers

Dentist Offices

Doctors’ Offices

Home Healthcare Workers

Child Care

Plumbers

Insurance Agents

Teachers

Nurses & Hospital Workers

Law Firms

Custodial Workers

Auto Dealerships

Veterinarians

Optometrists

Property Management

Office Workers

Tire and Auto Centers

Cleaning / Maid Services Rehab Offices

Collision Shops

PEO Services

Many more

If they can’t afford LTD or get underwritten for it – they are a perfect DAS case!

Double the commissions for the first year and the ability to offer your clients a low cost valuable service, a win-win opportunity!

For more information on the contest feel free to contact me at any time! Good luck and have a great open enrollment season!

Last time we talked about the second part of word of mouth tactics to help you put together a system to shorten the purchasing decision time of your customers, which can increase your profits immensely.

Today we’re going to talk about the nine levels of word of mouth, giving you a tool to measure the word of mouth circulating around your company, products and services. You can then see where you are getting negative or weak word of mouth and find ways to correct it.

So, launching into the nine levels of word of mouth – it should seem relatively obvious that the negative levels are, well, negative and the positive levels are positive.

Minus 4

This is the worst of the worst and means your product is creating a scandal. Remember when the popular over-the-counter pain relievers, like Tylenol, were deemed unsafe? Yeah, you won’t want that kind of word of mouth.

Minus 3

Disgruntled customers are going out of their way to keep other consumers from purchasing your products and services. They are boycotting you.

Minus 2

While not outwardly boycotting, when customers are asked about you they will give a negative response.

Minus 1

At this level, people are mildly dissatisfied and while not outwardly talking about it, they will have an opinion if asked. Now, they may still purchase from you despite their negative feelings, which can be a little confusing.

Level 0

This is sort of a neutral place to be. Customers are using your products, but don’t really talk about it. People rarely ask them about it, so they aren’t sharing their opinion with others. This can be a bit of a slippery slope, because you don’t want to turn that neutral experience into a negative one. In fact, you should work to make it a positive one.

Plus 1

At this level we are finally starting to work our way into the positive word of mouth about your company, products and services. Plus 1 signifies that people are generally pleased with your products, but unless asked, don’t really say anything about them.

Plus 2

When asked, your customers will talk about how much they love your products.

Plus 3

Customers will go out of their way to talk about your products, services, company and their shopping experience with you. This is most evident when you see how people recommend movies to their friends and family.

Plus 4

Your product is the toast of the town. There is an obvious buzz going around and your business is the place to be. People are not only talking about your great products and services, but they are talking about their shopping experience, your customer service and how they perceive the company to help them in the future.

Some great examples of Plus 4 companies are:

Nordstrom

Coca Cola

Apple

Audi

FedEx

Tesla

We’re going to leave this lesson for you to mull over and take a look at what kind of word of mouth you are generating. If you need help with this process, reach out to us!

Next time we’re going to talk about the 30 ways to harness the power of word of mouth.

Today we’ll start a new series covering Word of Mouth and how it can make or break your business in an extremely short amount of time. In this first lesson we’ll get a feel for what exactly word of mouth is.

Word of mouth is easily the most powerful form of marketing and is absolutely free. People talk about ads they see, experiences they have and the products they purchase. If you treat people right and spread the word about your new products/services in a positive way, you’ll attract the right customers and clients who will sustain your business for a long time.

Now, as positive as word of mouth can be for your business, the other side of the coin is how negative it can be as well. Bad news seems to travel invariably faster than good news, and if you have a less than high-quality product or weak customer service system, your customers will tell everyone they know not to buy your products and services.

The age of technology has proved to be an amazing benefit in the world of word of mouth. With blogs, podcasts, online marketing, forums, social networking and all the other online mediums available, it is easier for consumers to share their experiences. And remember, this is all free advertising for you.

Let’s take a minute to talk about the importance of shortening the customer decision cycle to help the customers/client to choose more quickly and easily. There are three great benefits of shortening the decision cycle:

Increase the overall dollar amount customers spend on each purchase.

Increase your number of customers.

Increase frequency of purchases.

Let’s take a deeper look at decision speed. Offer simplicity, ease and a fun purchasing atmosphere and you’ll help your customers make their decisions quicker and more confidently. When this happens your customers will buy more frequently, spend more money than usual, refer friends and make the decision to purchase more quickly. This can raise your market share by over 100 times.

The time it takes your customer to decide and purchase far outweighs any other component of marketing. When you focus on customer decision speed it forces you to take a hard look at your company’s brand image, positioning, value, customer service, guarantees and product quality.

The next area I want to talk about quickly is how to minimize the friction, or stress, involved with decision making. No matter how easily people find decision making there is a certain amount of anxiety we all experience when making a purchase, especially from a new source or for a large amount of money. When you help to minimize this emotional response, you will soothe your customers’ anxiety and they will make their decision quicker and more confidently.

Here are a few secrets to accelerate the customers’ decision making progress:

Your benefits, features, claims and promises must be obvious, clear and concise.

The information you offer must be complete, easy to understand, credible and balanced.

Use comparisons that show a marked difference.

Your guarantees must be rock solid and more than the customer expects.

Make trial periods easy.

You must have simple evaluations of your products or services.

Testimonials need to be relevant and positive.

Your support, delivery and other operational systems must be perfect.

Your website can be as good as you make it. You can offer more than information; you can offer an experience that guides your customers gently through the decision making process to make it easy for them to buy. Take it a step beyond by offering toll-free support numbers, software downloads to help with the process or other classy and informative ways to reassure your customers that you are there with them every step of the way and have nothing to hide.

This wraps up the first post in our series on word of mouth. If you need help identifying your target market and the issues with their purchasing experience that is increasing decision time, let us know!

Next time we’ll move forward with word of mouth and talk about what exactly this powerful tool is and how it can be used.

In the last post we talked about negotiating with your big fish and how to nurture and build on the relationships you are creating. Today we’ll talk about the power your fish has and how to utilize that for your benefit.

One of the most important aspects of this is to keep your cheerleader cheering. This refers to the ally you created in the company and who needs to stay loyal to you in order to continue a profitable partnership with your fish. You can keep your champion going by offering or doing a number of things to show appreciation:

Share the limelight.

Help them thank their company with new products and services.

Emotionally connect them to your company.

Know when to leave them alone.

Keep your “family” happy.

Stay on the front lines.

Now that you have some ideas of how to build solid relationships, you need to seek out people with whom to build these relationships. These alliances will help you get bigger clients that stay with you for the long run. You can often get in the door by offering them something they need:

Power

Information

Better work experience

These are all great ways to feed your alliance. You need to go into a relationship considering the things a big fish can offer you besides money:

The opportunity for your business to expand

The opportunity to learn from the experience and find ways to grow

The opportunity to improve your processes, systems and other means of doing business

These are some of the best ways to keep your alliances going strong and your partnerships fresh and content.

If you need help with any of these tactics, try our FREE guided tour for great tools and resources that can help you every step of the way.

There are a few things you need to do and consider to prepare for your first face-to-face meeting:

Make a list of what you want to accomplish during the meeting.

Anticipate potential concerns from the client.

Check to make sure you are completely prepared.

Listen more than you talk.

Bring support staff with you.

Use and respect the client’s format.

Always follow through.

Ask for what you need and seal the deal.

Simplify your prospect’s life.

Find ways to boost your credibility.

Build and nurture relationships.

Learn from “no.” Find out what didn’t work so you know how to change it for the next time.

Each of these is important to do both before and during your presentation. With confidence behind your company and product you will catch that big fish. The next step of the process is negotiation. This can seem a little intimidating, but with a few tips and tricks it can become natural to you.

Here are some tips to help you negotiate successfully:

Build a pricing strategy and stick with it.

Prioritize what you plan to offer. This should include what really matters to you and what you are willing to give in on.

Don’t give in too quickly.

Negotiate with a person, not a “company.”

Don’t let their answer be that they would like to, but can’t.

Don’t sell yourself short.

Mitigate your pricing. If you go too low you won’t be able to raise it back up, and you need to make a profit.

Don’t sacrifice quality for the deal.

Your services should always count as costs.

Boost margins with add-ons.

Handle requests for proposals with the utmost care.

These are the ways you can ensure both parties are getting the best possible outcome from the partnership. Once you start meeting or working together, it is important to continue to build your relationship in order for that representative to become a big ally for you. They will be more likely to vouch for you and build on the partnership you have with their company.

We like to call this person a champion. They are a champion for your company and can bring a stronger, brighter future to your company. Here are the characteristics of a great champion:

They are respected by supervisors.

They are socially networked.

They think in the best interest of their company’s long run.

They are able to quickly navigate through the company to get things done.

They are willing to give credit to another person.

They share the same business philosophy, values and vision as you.

Now that you know how to negotiate what is best for both parties and build on relationships, we’re going to talk about how to use your fish’s power to the best of your benefit.

If you need help with any of the negotiation or courting processes, check out this FREE guided tour to get access to a wealth of great tools and resources to improve your success.

In the last post we talked about making first contact with your prospective big fish and how to make a positive first impression. Today we’re going to talk about feeling out the personality of your big fish to match them to the right salesperson.

You need to do this in two steps:

Profile your salespeople’s personalities.

Match the right salesperson to your target fish.

There are essentially three different selling personalities:

Sage

Pal

Pit Bull

The Sage

This salesperson offers knowledge, experience, comfort and trust. They can make a concerned customer feel at ease. In order to be successful they need plenty of information, a demo of the product/service, references and case studies, if possible.

The Pal

Much like it sounds, this is a salesperson that excels at building relationships. They can instantly relate to the prospective client and make them seem like old friends in no time. They work best with clients who are looking for friendship and information and with clients who are in a similar peer group as the salesperson. This can include anything from age and culture to hobbies and nightlife. While sharing experiences can be beneficial to creating a new relationship, your salesperson must always keep it professional and dignified. The resources this personality type needs is help pairing with the right client, an entertainment (or schmoozing) budget and the right information to meet the client’s needs.

The Pit Bull

Obviously, this personality type is a little more aggressive than the others. They are all about business and the bottom line. While this may seem harsh to a lot of people, there is a set of business people out there who all want the same thing and respect someone who can get down to business and the benefits of a partnership. This salesperson will need to be trusted with a little authority as they will likely be closing deals on the spot. They’ll need plenty of resources and access to products and services. They are best placed in environments where they can work independently, exercise their authoritative discretion and seal deals quickly.

These personalities can all be successful when each is used in the right selling environment. You can easily see how matching the right salesperson for the client can secure more big fish for a longer period of time.

If you need help figuring out which of your salespeople fit into these three areas, try our FREE test drive and work with one of our amazing coaches to get your big fish plan in action.

Today we’ll take a look at how the kings of industry wine, dine and otherwise cajole prospects.

Most of successful professionals use a series of information based ads that build emotion and a call to action. These are much more effective than a standard company branding advertisements. The same principles that go into putting together a high impact (and, often, high priced) ad campaign can be adapted to fit your needs with similar results.

Here are some ways to put together and execute a professional, effective ad campaign:

Put together a short report that you’ll automatically send to prospects when they contact you. This should include a short description of your business and what you specialize in. Don’t forget to include case studies, samples or other proof of your success.

Develop value-oriented ads.

Consider newsletters as a way of educating and informing customers about your industry and services offered.

Offer a free seminar, webinar or other lecture to build awareness of your business, but make sure you make the information pertinent to your target market and find speakers who are respected and known in the industry.

Buy an existing business, introduce better marketing and grow this new business faster than a “from scratch” business.

Always test different versions of your ads to find the most effective ones.

Use direct mail marketing to grow your business.

Put together a database of previous customers and send them new information.

Approach large firms who may need your services and negotiate a deal to be their exclusive expert in your field.

Offer a 24-hour information line with a regularly updated recorded message. Make this available to all past and future customers/clients.

Donate time or materials to local charities to show support in your area.

Offer public clinics for the general public to come along and discuss what they need that’s free and approachable.

Organize seminars your customers/clients can pay to attend by putting together a high-perception value package.

Approach local newspaper by offering to write a weekly column about your area of expertise. Don’t ask for money, just a byline and bio.

Develop a weekend or other destination seminar for customers/clients, not only does this give you an action-packed weekend with the most important people, it gives them a tax-deductible business adventure.

Take a good seminar and turn it into written form as a home study, member site program, audio or video program.

Approach large companies and offer to give seminars to their employees, investors or management.

Be proactive with your marketing plan.

Barter for your marketing. Offer products or services in lieu of payment.

Be willing to bring in new clients, even if at an initial loss because it will likely pay off later.

Regulate your marketing budget to maximize the potential income from them to hit the next year and try to push back advertising costs for the next year to offset your expenses.

Make offers to target markets or target market businesses to pay them for referrals or shared databases.

Give away something free to everyone who brings in a print version of your advertisement. This is a great way to see which ads are giving you the most bang for your buck.

Continually consider what new products/services you can offer to current customers/clients.

Develop a mail order division of your company.

Offer a proposition to your competitors to trade customers/clients you were both unsuccessful in selling to.

Use different marketing tactics as an excuse to attract new customers/clients with new offers and goodies.

Offer a “you-choose-the-price” program. This is especially good for product you just can’t seem to sell.

So, there are 30 great ways to market to other professional and businesses. Some other great ways to get your name out there for little or no cost are:

Get involved you in your community-volunteer, donate to local events, etc.

Join your local Chamber of Commerce and attend the networking and other activities throughout the year.

Join a local, state or regional professional associates for further networking opportunities.

Become a board member of a local organization.

Advertising should never be your only method of marketing, there are a myriad of ways to get your name out there in a way that feels personal to potential customers/clients.

“Effective advertising…must be used to get your name out to the public. If your name is not familiar to people, they will not come to you.” Jay Abraham

If you’re not sure where you start with your marketing plan or how to reach out to your local community, competitors, customers/clients and others who could influence your business in a highly positive way, try our FREE test drive to experience the tools and resources we have to boost your business to the next level and beyond.

There are three key areas of public relations you can use to boost your advertising results ten-fold over your paid advertising.

The key to public relations lie in:

Public relation or publicity

Merchandising

Promotions

With a solid plan in place that encompasses all these areas, you’ll have a great approach to use public relations in the best way possible.

Public relations include all that is the media. Don’t limit yourself. The attention of newspapers, television, radio, magazines, bloggers, ezines and more are all equally powerful. Online marketing is just as, if not more, important as conventional media.

Here are the steps to get noticed by the media:

Put together a press release for your company. The press release should be relevant to your target market and address consumer interest, not just announce your business.

Compact your press release to include one hook and one angle. Choose the most attention-getting to make sure the media person you are sending it to is interested in reading it.

Put your press release in professional formatting. With press releases you need a dateline, the most important information at the top, facts, figures and wrap it up with contact details including who and how. Print the press release on your letterhead.

Send your press release to all television and radio stations, local and metro newspapers, national newspapers, industry magazines, and any other form of media that reaches your target market. Don’t forgot to include relevant blogs, ezines, press release submission sites and to industry professionals.

More importantly than a perfect press release is to make sure you have addressed the needs of your target market in the products/services you offer and made that clear in the press release. If you provide people a solution to a problem, a way to avoid a problem and an opportunity to enhance their life the media and public will be interested.

If you have a connection (or the ability to get a connection) with a celebrity, this can practically guarantee you’ll get attention. Make sure you are offering newsworthy information, and then follow up with media outlets to make sure they are publicizing that information.

“One of the most powerful techniques every business should use is free publicity. As the name implies, there is no cost, just the time and effort required to attract attention to your business.” Jay Abraham

Our FREE test drive can show you how to put together press releases that work! Check out how the pro’s do it and craft the perfect press releases for your business.

Educate them about what, you may be thinking. Well, consider this, many businesses focus solely on attracting new customers, but you NEED to spend a good chunk of your time retaining current and former customers. These are people you already know to be a good sales potential…they’ve already bought from you!

Take the time to market and sell new products to your old customers and less time trying to sell old products to new customers and you will see a drastic change in your sales, customer quality and branding position.

Here are a couple of key elements to use to retain your current customers:

Stay in contact: This means by phone, email, e-newsletter, in person-by pigeon if you have too!

Post-Purchase Assurance: This means you need to follow up with customers. Your customers need to feel like they are being supported for their purchase and with the item they purchased. How many times have you purchased a product, then felt completely abandoned? Something as simple as a Thank You note with your contact or customer service information can go along way in retaining a great customer.

Deals & Guarantees: Always offer your current customers the best deals and guarantees you have. Show them you appreciate their business or even come up with a club specifically to reward loyal customers. You can also do this with a preferred pricing option.

Integrity: Using good business practices and simply upholding integrity, dignity and honesty go along way with customers. Let’s face it, there’s a lot of swindling and crap out there and the safer and more confident you make your customers feel, the more they will trust you and that makes for an amazingly supportive and loyal customer.

There are three cornerstone ideas to a successful business:

Quality product/service

Offering useful products/services that solve a problem for or enhance the life of a customer

Offer subjects your customers find interesting

Use this approach of educating your customers and offering them real information and insight and you will be rewarded with loyalty and success.

Stop wasting all your time on new prospects while your current customers fall by the wayside!

As Jay Abraham says, “Your best prospects are your existing customers. If you’ve been putting all your marketing efforts into acquiring new customers, stop and diverts some of your resources into reselling, upselling, cross-selling to those same customers. In every ways possible – through package inserts, regular mailings, special offers – stay in touch with those customers and get them used to buying from you.”

So, there it is! Remember, our FREE test drive can help you put together the resources and tools to do exactly that. We can help you educate your customers and you can watch the benefits pay offer many-fold.